Immortal
by Sandrine C
Summary: The aftermath of the events at the end of "The Departed" 3x22 and how it changes Elena and Damon, the truths it unleashes and secrets that unravel, threatening all they know and love.
1. Chapter 1

**Immortal **

**Disclaimer: The characters and other things from The Vampire Diaries don't belong to me. Credit goes to the rightful owners.**

Elena's eyes fluttered to a close as her last breath left her, giving in to the fate she evaded once before. At last, death finally chased her down and claimed her as promised.

Yet there was none of the peace she expected, not from the pain that slashed through her heart like a thousand shards of glass all at once when unbidden memories she never even knew she came crashing relentlessly.

"_I just have to say it once, you just have to hear it…I love you, Elena. And it's because I love you that I can't be selfish with you…why you can't know this. I don't deserve you. But my brother does. God, I wish you didn't have to forget this but you do."_

"_You want a love that consumes you. You want passion and adventure and even a little danger."_

His voice filled her head, demanding her attention even as she slipped from the world, pulling her towards it even as the words burned her. It pushed out everything but the darkness that began to suffocate her and she all she wanted was for it to be over. Because that's what it should be. Over. It has to be. TShe refused to believe the images in her head, that they were stolen memories. If they were, then it wasn't a parting gift she would want to take with her. She wanted to die without them because there was no coming back from this. No way to undo the choices she made and the hearts that she broke.

"_Goodbye, Elena."_

She wanted to scream as his last words took over, the blackness hovering just at the edge letting madness play with her before taking her in completely. She wanted to demand silence that death should bring. Elena just wanted release from the pain, from the truth that at the last second she wanted Damon to save her.

Yet there was no tunnel, no light or even the other side in sight. Fear gripped her as she fought to free herself from invisible shackles that held her down. But in she remained still in the midst of her panic, her struggle invisible even to her as she fought to open her eyes or whatever it was that would get her past the dark. She just wanted to stop hearing Damon say goodbye.

In her panic, she didn't notice the second things began to change. It was her hearing that first came back to her. Crying. Someone was crying next to her. She could imagine a steady stream of tears, silent but raw emotions that told her a story of pain and anger steady beside her. Then she heard footsteps, quick and filled with purpose, growing louder as it came closer, each footfall speaking of hope mixed with trepidation. It was that sound that she clung to; mentally trying to claw her way out whatever she was in.

Elena struggled harder, desperation rising in her as she fought against facts and age-old beliefs that told her she was dead and she was attempting the impossible. She simply wanted to open her eyes. She could do it. She just needed enough time to set things right.

The door swung open but Elena did not hear it because her body decided it was time and her own gasp prevented her from hearing anything else. For a second her only focus was her dead lungs clawing for air it did not need.

"Elena."

The voice cut through the haze cleanly, disrupting her racing thoughts, allowing her to focus on what was in front of her. Elena stared at them, turning first to Stefan then to Damon, as a nagging feeling crept up on her when she realized the room was entirely too silent. Her hand found its way to her chest, feeling for something she already knew no longer existed. But she needed to know. She placed her palm flat against her heart and waited for what seemed like an endless minute until Stefan gently lifted her hand and took it in his. Elena watched as Damon shook his head and stepped closer to them.

"I'm…?" Elena whispered, unable to voice out the rest of the words, fearing the weight of reality it will bring.

"Yes," Damon said, his jaw clenched tight, "I need to know. Right now. Can you do this?"

"I…" Elena said trailing off, looking at Stefan for help, her anchor in life and in death.

"It's your call, Elena," Stefan said gently, "Whatever you decide, _we_ will respect it."

Damon rolled his eyes and leaned forward, placing both hands on the edge of the table, staring straight at Elena, "Once upon a time, I watched a friend who decide to go gently into the night. It did not go well. For everyone involved. In fact, it led us to this point. I will not go through that again, not with you. Because if you choose that and I'm within a hundred miles of you, I will not let you go. So tell me now so I can walk out that door and I will pretend you drowned, died, the end."

"Why did you make me forget?" Elena said quietly, asking questions that plagued her in the dark.

Damon blinked and stepped back in surprise. "That was fast."

"Tell me, Damon." Elena said, her voice growing stronger, "I deserve to know."

Damon leaned lazily against the wall and stared her down, "Elena, you already know why I made you forget. I told you then and I'm not about to repeat them now because that is the definition of wasting time. Trust me, we don't have much of it. So I suggest that instead of dwelling on history, you focus on deciding if you want blood or some elaborate farewell gesture with candles and tears. Your choice."

"Damon," Stefan said sharply glaring at his brother, "You're not helping."

Turning to Elena, Stefan took both her hands and forced her to look at him, "This is huge, Elena, I know that. And I know you'd want time to decide but Damon is right, you will need to choose and it will have to be soon. If you choose this life, then I'll get you through it. But if…not…then we will find a way to make it as peaceful as possible."

Damon gave her a small smile and shrugged, "Guess this is the time you start thinking of always, instead of just right now. Because that's what the choice is. Forever or the few hours that stands between you and true death."

"Tell me why, Damon," Elena insisted, almost pleading, as if in his answer lay the one to her own dilemma, "Please. Why didn't you give them back to me before…before this?"

Damon straightened up and faced her squarely, "Because if you knew all that and still didn't choose me then I'd have lost even the wretched 'what if'."

"Stefan, champion of free will, I'll let you list out pros and cons with Elena and just give me a call when you're done," he said addressing his brother as he turned to leave.

"Why aren't you fighting, Damon?" Elena questioned him, causing him to pause, "You tried to do this to me once before, forced me to drink your blood and now you're acting like this isn't something you want."

"No, Elena," Damon said with a bittersweet smile, "I want this. You have no idea how grateful I am to Meredith Fell's twisted medical practice that made it possible for you to ask me all these repetitive questions. I would listen to all of them and answer them for all of forever if it meant you're still walking on this earth. But I've realized that our best chance of convincing you to stay will be leaving you with someone you want to be with, someone who can make you see it won't be so bad. And it's not me. It's Stefan. It's always going to be Stefan."

Elena closed her eyes, unwilling to watch Damon walk away, trying to forget the other brother who stood by her side, unmoved and ready to support her through anything.

"He was right," Elena said after a long while, breaking the silence, "I want what everyone wants. I want a love that consumes me, passion, adventure…I want a love that makes me want to live. But not like this."

"Stefan," she said turning to him, "I want to say…goodbye…to everyone. Please. Come with me and make sure I don't… hurt anyone."

Stefan nodded and helped her to her feet. Not trusting himself to talk, he simply held her hand until he could speak.

"Stefan," Elena said making him stop, "Tell Damon to go. Now"

"Elena, you owe him at least a goodbye," Stefan said, "Even if he runs away from this, it will eventually destroy him."

"You don't get it," Elena said in a hollow voice, "He was right. He has to go because if he stays, he will find a way to have me complete the transition…and part of me knows that I will want him to. So please, Stefan, before the last of my human will disappears, tell him to go because he's going to make me want to stay."

* * *

Klaus stared at the coffin that held his body, detesting that he inhabited one of a traitor, of his own creation no less. But he was a survivor and this was one of those little sacrifices that needed to be done. A slow smile crept on his face as he popped the lid up and found further proof in the indestructibility the doppelganger blood has provided him. The flames killed the vampire, the essence of the original within that body. That much was true. The other half of the hybrid is truly gone but there was another monster that lived in him and he has been asleep for far too long.

"Katerina and Elena cannot exist in the same form," Klaus whispered as he sealed the coffin closed once more, loading it on the back of a truck, "And if Elena chooses wrongly, I will wake up that which even I fear and there will be no mercy."

He closed his eyes briefly, remembering eyes that matched his, the feel of a kiss that was not meant for him, a love that he desired but was not his, of wanting to run away from all the madness. Klaus shook his head free of her and stared at Tyler's reflection as he whispered, "No mercy."


	2. Chapter 2: Fallout

**Immortal **

**Disclaimer: The characters and other things from The Vampire Diaries don't belong to me. Credit goes to the rightful owners.**

**Chapter 2: Fallout**

"I don't want to deal with you right now," Bonnie said, glaring at the vampire sitting on her porch, "You're not welcome here, not now, not ever."

Damon straightened up and met Bonnie's eyes with a fierce look of his own, his eyes flashing angrily, masking the desperation that stirred in him, "Believe me you're going to want to hear this."

"It will have to _wait_." Bonnie said standing her ground as Damon stood up and took a step closer to her, "The world will have to wait. Don't you understand? I lost a friend today."

"Well, you're going to lose another if you don't step up, witch," Damon said angrily, barely resisting the urge to shake Bonnie, "Since you've been curiously MIA for the last few hours, let me catch you up on the death toll. Matt, the luckiest human in this forsaken town, barely escaped death. Alaric is a festering corpse. And do you know how that came to be? Does your friend Esther's spell ring any bells? Elena is dead. But that's not the best part. She died with vampire blood in her system, the go-to cure of the very competent Dr. Fell. So, now your so-called best friend is in transition and I'm pretty sure unless you can tell her you can bring her back as a human she's going to choose to die. Now you tell me if that can wait. Tick tock, Bonnie, the clock is ticking."

Bonnie's world began to spin, the horrific chain of events pulling her apart from the inside with the sickening realization that there are limits she is still unwilling to breach. "I can't…there's nothing…I can't."

"Dig deep, " Damon said through gritted teeth, grabbing Bonnie by the shoulders, "Or we lose her. And everything has been for nothing. All the sacrifices we all made to keep her alive will mean nothing. Nothing."

"Don't you think that if I could prevent something like this, I wouldn't have done it already for my own mother?" Bonnie said, her eyes narrowed in fury, breaking free of his grasp.

"You brought back Jeremy from the dead!" Damon exploded, "Why can't you do it again? _This is the same thing!_"

"Because she's as good as a vampire!" Bonnie shouted back, "She's already cursed. The blood running through her veins is filled with dark magic and that's why she's back from the dead, that's what you're all made of—darkness."

"Then fight fire with fire, Bonnie," Damon said forcefully, "Don't pretend you're still playing by the rules because I know you've already crossed the line."

"You know nothing!" Bonnie said in a low voice, curling her hands he fell to the ground helpless and writhing in pain as she placed on him more pain than she had ever inflicted before. She stared at him numbly, waiting for when he would pass out from the torture and finding she did not care when he did. If she couldn't change Elena's fate, then everyone should share her grief starting with Damon.

"Bonnie! What are you doing?" Caroline said, surprising Bonnie enough to sever the connection, "What's going on?"

"Nothing," Bonnie said darkly, giving Damon one last look of contempt before turning to her friend. Her heart softened instantly when she saw the dried up tear tracks on Caroline's face, eyes still swimming with grief. Her arms encircled Caroline as she tried to comfort her friend, "Let's go inside. We'll talk. There are some…developments."

"No," Caroline said tearfully, pulling back, her eyes wild and frantic as words stumbled out of her incoherently, "Tyler…we can't…I can't…we have to…find…"

"Spit it out, Barbie," Damon said struggling to his feet slowly, "We have more important things to attend to than listening to you stutter about how you lost the Romeo to your Juliet."

Bonnie silenced Damon with a scathing look, turning back to Caroline only when he raised his hands in mock surrender. "Ignore him, Caroline. What's wrong?"

Caroline closed her eyes and whispered, "I can't find Tyler. His body…it's gone."

* * *

Elena watched her brother pace back and forth in front of her, his entire body shaking with visible agitation, "Jeremy, please try to understand. This is the right thing to do."

"How is leaving me all alone the right thing, Elena?" Jeremy said tightly, "I have no one in this world but you and you're just going to walk out on me?"

"I'm dead, Jeremy," Elena said quietly, "If I stay here then I'll just be putting you in more danger. I'm trying to protect you. You'll be better off with a life without vampires. You can go back to Denver and start again. If I…_turn_ then there I take you down a path where you either end up dead or undead. I don't want that for you. I want you safe."

"Elena," Jeremy said, "In case you've forgotten, that was where I met Kol, who as it turns out is an Original. So stop lecturing me about being safe because there is no safe place in this messed up world. You're a survivor, Elena, so why are you giving up now?"

"Because I'm tired, Jeremy!" Elena said breaking down, exhausted, "I just want to be selfish and not think about the lives I put in danger just by existing. Mom, Dad, Aunt Jenna, John, Alaric, Tyler—all that blood is on my hands and whatever I do, I can't seem to wash it away. But if I choose death, then I'll be free of that. Let me be selfish, Jeremy."

Jeremy smiled bitterly, "You don't have it in you to be selfish, Elena. That feeling will fade away soon enough then maybe you'll finally figure out what's really holding you back."

Without a backward glance, Jeremy left the kitchen and left Elena with Stefan.

"He'll come around," Stefan said gently, "This isn't something easy to accept. Do you want me to talk to him?"

Elena slumped in her seat and shook her head, "No, we'll just push him further and I don't want…to go with him mad at me. You're right he'll come around. He's just in shock."

"He's right you know," Stefan said carefully as he took a seat in front of her, "I understand you want none of this but the reasons you're giving us make me think that you're simply running from something rather than believing it's the right thing to do."

Elena sighed, "I'm afraid, Stefan. Since all this madness came into my life, I took comfort in knowing that one day I'd be released from all that and all I had to do was live in the moment, get through it and just survive. Right now was the most important time of my life and I was okay with that because maybe the next one won't even come. You live like that long enough and suddenly the word 'always' becomes the most frightening word. What do you do when forever is actually possible and it just stretches out in front of you with practically no escape from it and all the horrors it holds?"

Stefan gave her a small smile, "I've been around for more than a century and I still exist not knowing which day is the last. I just stopped getting older and got a little bit harder to kill. But I don't think we're talking about that, are we? I don't think you're running from that."

"I picked you, Stefan," Elena started, "Halfway out of town and I could have gone to Damon when I thought you two were dying. But I chose Mystic falls because I thought I didn't have time to make amends with everyone back here if I took a risk on him. I went with the least complicated decision because that's all I had time to think through and I could wave away any regret with that reason."

"And now here you are," Stefan said, "finally stronger and safer if you turn and with enough time on your hands that all your excuses are washed away. You finally have to decide based on what you really feel. The choice will be unmarred, unbiased—it will be _real. _And that's what scares you."

Elena closed her eyes and rested her head on her hands, "What do I do, Stefan?" she said in a small voice.

Stefan walked around the table and kissed the top of her head, "You leave us out of this decision. You pick the road with least regret and whatever you can live with…however long may be left of it. Go upstairs and get some rest. More voices will add to this argument when morning comes and you need to keep a level head. I'll stay down here."

Elena gave him a small smile and squeezed his hand before doing as she was asked. She felt his eyes on her as she went up the stairs, his concern palpable. With a deep breath she entered her room and it quickly turned into a gasp.

"I thought we were over with the whole surprise element of me showing up in your bedroom," Damon said tonelessly as he sat by her window, "On a night as big as this, you should have expected I'd squeeze in a guest appearance somehow."

"I thought you said you don't want to be around me right now," Elena said.

Damon rolled his eyes, "Well someone had to come over here and explain to you why there's no emergency slumber party with the witch and Vampire Barbie. Something about a missing body…I forget. Blondie was a blubbering mess and Bonnie gave me a massive headache so I couldn't process much of what they were saying."

"Do you always need to be so insensitive when you're hurting, Damon?" Elena said angrily.

Damon waved her comment away and patted the spot next to him, "Yes, it's my defense mechanism. But enough about things we already know and people who aren't in this room. You've got bigger problems. Let's talk about that."

Elena gave him an exasperated sigh but sat down next to him just the same. "I assume you heard my conversation with Stefan."

Damon smirked, "It's not my fault that voices carry in this house…and that I have really good hearing, which you also stand to get if you choose door number three. Would the lady like to hear what other prizes lay behind it?"

"Fire away," Elena said, the corner of her mouth turning up.

"You won't need to worry about fine lines and wrinkles," Damon said counting off his fingers, "You'll be able to hear all the good gossip without even trying. You'll be strong enough to bodily throw me out the door if I get too annoying. "

"What else?" Elena said closing her eyes as she let her head fall on his shoulder.

Damon rearranged himself and placed his arm around her, using his other hand to tuck a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, "Since you won't be staying in one place for long so people don't notice you're aging, you have the perfect excuse to see the world. Trust me when I tell you, the other parts of this world don't have as high a death rate as Mystic Falls. "

She smiled sadly, tears edging out of her closed lids as she leaned closer to him, "What's the best part of being a vampire?"

Damon pressed his lips on her head and spoke in a voice only they could hear. "It makes it possible for you to fall in love with someone born in another century. And that, my dear Elena, makes every single pain worth it."

Elena awoke with a scream. Her skin felt like it was on fire and the sunlight that streamed through her window burned through her. She placed a hand on her chest as she looked around her room, disoriented and a small part of her expecting, maybe hoping, that Damon would still be there.

* * *

"Sorry, he left an hour ago," a female voice emerged from the corner, "muttering something about finding Bonnie, the bad witch friend, and dragging her ass back here."

Elena gasped when she whirled around to see an all too familiar face. She instinctively pushed back farther on the bed, putting as much distance between her and the unwelcome guest.

"Get out, Katherine." Elena said, "Just because Klaus is dead that doesn't mean you're welcome back in town."

Katherine laughed and tilted her head at Elena as she stared, her eyes holding no humor in them, "You won't survive as a vampire if you remain that naïve, Elena. Neither of the Salvatore brothers can save you from _that._ And I would hold off on the driving me away because you might just come looking for me before this day is through."

"I doubt that," Elena said scathingly, "Get. Out."

Katherine smirked and raised her hands in mock surrender, "I'll go but before I do, might I make a suggestion? I'd think twice about not turning, Elena. Oh, don't look at me like you're not leaning towards that with all your misplaced nobility. I'm here to put a stop to that because you'll be missing out on one wild ride."

"I'm not _you_, Katherine," Elena spat out, "This isn't some game to me."

Katherine raised her eyebrow at Elena, "You can only wish to be half as interesting as me, Elena, even as a vampire. Now if you can let me finish, the sooner we can end this excruciating conversation and I'll be on my way."

"You've met the original witch, have you not?" Katherine asked, "yet I don't think she explained to you _why_ our bloodline was used and why doppelgangers exist. Think, Elena, doesn't it strike you as odd that your blood is so potent that it's the magic ingredient in every potent spell since the beginning of all vampires?"

"But it's over now that I'm a vampire. I'm dead. I'm no longer the doppelganger. I'm useless," Elena said faintly, watching Katherine's lips spread into a Cheshire-like smile.

"Your blood, yes quite useless," Katherine said, "but that doesn't mean the magic has died. "

"What are you talking about?" Elena asked.

Katherine smiled triumphantly, "Now I've got her curious. Well, Elena, it's not everyday that the past and the present collide, right? In fact, this old book I read says that it's only meant to happen once."

"You think that's us?" Elena said incredulously.

Katherine merely shrugged, "Not if you insist on fading away."

"What's the catch? So it happens, then what? A rainbow appears?" Elena said

"Damon is rubbing off on you." Katherine pointed out, "Not very becoming. And no, it's much grander than that. Let's just say that the biggest regret you have right now can be washed away if you decide to turn, changing with the world you know now. Ah, and I can hear your pathetic friends have arrived so my time is up."

Katherine turned around before she left, "Oh and I left a drink for you," she said nodding towards a dark bottle that was mostly hidden from view, "I have a feeling you're going to need it after Bonnie's confession."

"What?" Elena demanded, inexplicably wanting to hear it from Katherine than her friend, "Tell me now."

"Let's just put it this way," Katherine said with an evil smile, "I know for a fact that Scary Mary was sired by Klaus and I'm still here."

"But Tyler…" Elena said as a soft knock came from outside her door.

"Haven't you heard?" Katherine said, "Seems the body was never found. Goodbye for now, Elena. I'll be around."

Without a final glance, Katherine leapt out of the open window as the door opened, leaving Elena to face the guilt that was clear on witch's face.


	3. Chapter 3: Infinity

**Immortal **

**Disclaimer: The characters and other things from The Vampire Diaries don't belong to me. Credit goes to the rightful owners.**

**Chapter 3: Infinity**

The knock echoed through the empty hall. It was a sound the old man's ears thought he would never live to hear like his ancestors before him. But he woke up that morning somehow knowing that day was different, feeling the shift in the magic that bound the castle. His master was near and the sun would not set without his return.

He limped along the stone floor as fast as he could, hoping the stories about this unspeakable evil were exaggerated. He was only a keeper and lived as faithfully as he could to the oath he made when his father died—to never leave castle, to never breathe a word of the existence of the crypt and to never dare ask what was inside.

The old man opened the heavy door and bowed his head, not even trying to steal a look at his master before he was permitted.

"Is it safe?" Klaus barked, growling with irritation with the voice that resounded in the silence.

"Yes, my liege," the old servant said, "It is as you left it. The seal holds."

Klaus moved past the man, his steps impatient but sure as he walked inside, calling back orders as he did so, "I am not to be disturbed. No one, and I mean _no one_, is to enter. If someone tries to breach the perimeter—kill them on sight."

"Sire!" the man said, shivering in horror, "Surely we won't need to resort to that…"

Before the man could blink he was thrown back and pinned against the wall.

"Do not dare defy me," Klaus said, an eerie calm settling on his voice, even as his eyes blazed with anger, "I have no patience for those who betray my trust."

"Y-y-yes," the man stuttered, "as you wish."

Klaus released him, "Well, what are you waiting for?"

With a nod the man shook, pain shooting up and down his body until he crumpled into a crouch, his whimpers turning into a howl of fury. The beast emerged and no trace of humanity could be seen in his glowing amber eyes, it's fangs sharp as steel and his insides thirsting for a kill.

Tyler's face slid into an easy smile, malicious and charming all at once, looking more like Klaus' true form than the boy from Mystic Falls, "Now that's more like it."

* * *

"Raise your hand if you think Bonnie is more unstable than I am," Damon said, his own hand waving wildly in the air.

"Stop it, Damon, you're not helping," Elena said, exasperated.

"Don't look at me," Damon said rolling his eyes, "Tell Bonnie that because she's the one who isn't helping and managed to make things a hundred times worse!"

Bonnie glared at him but did nothing. Instead she turned to Elena, "It was the only way I could save Tyler. Klaus was vulnerable. It was only a matter of time before Alaric got to him and I couldn't risk it. I couldn't lose anyone else in my life, Elena…you know how that feels right?"

Elena nodded slowly, as she sat down on the sofa, wincing at the smallest movement. In a flash, Stefan's hand shot out to help her steady herself, concern etching through every feature on his face as Damon looked away, his jaw set in frustration.

"So he's alive? Right?" Caroline asked in a small voice, "In his own body…just rooming with Klaus for the time being?"

"So eloquently put, Blondie," Damon said, "But the thing you should ask is how to kick out the unwanted roommate without killing all of us in the process because this means the verdict is still out on whether or not he sired out entire bloodline."

"He did," Elena said coughing out the words, her breathing becoming ragged even as she raised her hand up to tell them she was fine, clenching the other one and hiding it from view, "He turned Scary Mary."

"You should wipe the blood off your hand, Elena," said a voice drifting in from behind them, "It's going to stain the cushions and I don't think Jeremy knows the number to the dry cleaners if you die on him."

Damon threw his hands up in the air, settling himself beside Elena, as everyone else shifted into a defensive stance, "With all the crazy people around, I'm starting to feel like I have a shot at being the voice of reason. I take it you're the source of Elena's little golden nugget of information?"

Katherine nodded with a smirk, "Of course, you all would be nowhere without me really—all faulty spells and bad planning, never bothering to find out actual useful information. It's no wonder you're in this predicament. Your witch can't even go bad properly."

"Don't make me to be like you," Bonnie spat out, "I'm only doing what's best for the people I love."

"Are you sure you love them?" Katherine said sweetly, "Because you sure aren't trying hard enough."

"And what do you think I should have done, Katherine," Bonnie challenged, "How should we have saved Tyler? If you're so smart then why haven't you figured out a way to cut off from Klaus' line?"

"Who says I haven't?" Katherine asked raising her eyebrows.

"Because you wouldn't have kept tabs on what's been happening here as well as you have if you didn't have a stake in whether he lived or died," Stefan said flatly, "My guess is you've been lurking around and watching if you needed to intervene. Obviously you knew well enough to let it play out to this because this serves you somehow."

"Be still my heart," Katherine said, her eyes shining with mischief, "After all this time, you still know me so well, Stefan."

"Can you all please just shut up?" Caroline shouted, "All this banter is not getting us from point A to point B, which is saving Tyler! I get it, you're all so witty but words won't exactly make Klaus run for the hills and out of Tyler's body, which FYI is still missing!"

"I have a fairly good idea where he is. If you had just let me finish I would have told you by now," Katherine said impatiently, "Well, at a price of course."

"Name it," Bonnie said.

"My, my, embracing the dark side, now are we?" Damon said. "Making deals with the devil herself, Bonnie. Are you sure?"

"Oh, please Damon, you'll benefit from this too," Katherine said, "In fact, we all want the same thing right now…and that's for Elena to drink some human blood and turn. You don't have to kill anyone…just blood from a bag will do. Just one sip, and you're one step closer to getting back your hybrid. It's on you now, Elena."

"Not until you tell us more, Katherine," Elena said weakly, wiping the thin sheen of sweat on her forehead.

"I don't think you have that kind of time," Katherine pointed out, shaking her head as another fit of violent coughing took hold of Elena, "But as an act of good faith I'll tell you why he's so desperate to surround himself with an army of hybrids."

"He's sick, lonely and desperate for attention with a load of father issues," Caroline interrupted, "It's not exactly a secret he's creating things that he thinks will love him by default."

Katherine narrowed her eyes at Caroline, "Then he should have just compelled an army of vampires seeing as an Original he's quite capable of doing just that. And why continue with the whole hybrid obsession when Michael is already dead, his mother out of commission? Surely, there must be a reason… something else he fears, perhaps?"

"What does…that…have to do…with me?" Elena rasped out as Stefan pulled her in his arms.

"Well, you've always been at the center of whatever mayhem Klaus tries to create so my take is you're the main ingredient," Damon said watching Katherine carefully for confirmation.

"There's more to the story of the doppelganger, isn't there?" Bonnie said slowly, turning towards Katherine, "It doesn't end just because Elena died…it didn't end when _you_ turned. Or is that precisely why you wanted to become a vampire?"

"Now, now, I can't lay all the cards in a neat little row for you without getting anything in return," Katherine said wagging her finger, "I believe you know my terms. Find me when you've decided and well work out a plan. I look forward to it but I won't wait forever."

In a blink, Katherine left in a blur, practically vanishing into thin air. With an effort, Elena extricated herself from Stefan's grasp and stood.

"Caroline," Elena said with a struggle, "I need to talk to you…alone…Not here."

"I'm not sure," Caroline said, looking around, fully aware of the warning Damon had in his eyes, "I think we should stay put."

"NO!" Elena gasped out, "Please."

"Elena…" Stefan pleaded gently, "You're not…you don't…"

"Let her go," Damon said rising to his feet, tossing his car keys to Caroline, "She's dying. Just give her what she wants. Isn't that your motto, Stefan? Let her make her own choices? I think this is one of those moments, brother, or are you starting to regret you ever said that?"

_Thank you,_ Elena mouthed, barely holding back tears.

Damon merely shrugged and walked them out the door, calling out only when they were off the porch.

"Hey Elena?" Damon said, walking towards them with a small but pained smile on his lips, "I know you made your choice and I can't change your mind but if this is all I have left of you…then I'm going to make it count."

Without warning, he pulled her to him, one hand cupping her face as his lips found hers, with a kiss filled with fire and ice, consuming them until only ashes of their pain was left behind.

As abrupt as it began, Damon pulled away, his lips finding hers for a brief second, a last whisper of a kiss to bid her farewell.

"Just so you know," he said, his voice breaking, "I love you, Elena Gilbert. I always will."

* * *

"Okay, I know this is like a moment for you but for the record, I just want to point out that this is too morbid, even for you," Caroline said warily looking around at the tombstones surrounding them as she followed Elena's steps, "You're not dead yet and we're not doing a repeat of what Alaric did where you get into a crypt and wait to die. Neither will I bury you alive or something like that."

"Relax, Caroline," Elena said, stopping when she found the spot "I just want to visit my parents and Jenna."

Elena sat on the soft earth, closing her eyes as she breathed in deeply, savoring the feeling of her lungs expanding as she did, letting all the air out slowly.

"What was it like…when you turned?" Elena asked, hugging her knees to her chest.

It took a few seconds for realization to dawn on Caroline. "Scary. I felt like I was losing my mind," she started as she sat down next to Elena, "I didn't know that I was in transition, what was happening to my body. All I knew was that I wanted blood. Craved it ten times more than I ever wanted a meaty burger after cheerleading practice. It was…bloodlust. It controlled me and I couldn't imagine overcoming that."

Caroline sighed and put an arm around Elena, "I'm not Team Stefan for no good reason, you know? He's good. No matter what Ripper things he did, I'll never forget that he got me through that dark period. He helped me find _me_ again and be around the people I love without thinking their giant juice boxes."

"But I get it," Caroline said, frustration evident in her tone, "Damon is _alive_…even if he is technically dead. He's unpredictable, exciting and that whole bad boy charm is going for him. And yet somehow, he convinced me that he really does love you, the even after happily ever after kind of love."

"I'm not doing this for either of them, Caroline," Elena said as she pulled out a bag of blood that she hid in the folds of her jacket.

"Then why? Are you really buying into Katherine's lies?" Caroline said incredulously, taking the bag from Elena.

Elena reached out and pried the blood bag out of Caroline's hand, "You're going to make sure it isn't all lies. You're going to get out of town and you're going to find Tyler. You find him, you find Klaus…and whatever else Katherine has been hinting about. I'm sure of it. "

"I don't know where to start, Elena," Caroline said, "Bonnie has been trying to locate them but…it's like he just vanished off the planet."

"Katherine," Elena said, swallowing the lump in her throat, "she knows where. Tell her…tell her I decided to turn and this is my bargain—she helps us save Tyler."

"I don't trust her, Elena," Caroline said shaking her head, "and well…she scares me. She killed me once and I wouldn't put it past her to try again."

"No, she wants something bigger than that," Elena said, "All will be off when she gets what she wants but she's not there yet so she will play nice. I hope."

Caroline nodded, "Okay but I'll stay…at least until after you…you know, drink up."

Elena looked around and saw the fog creeping in, making her shake her head, "No, go now. It's okay…I won't be alone."

Caroline's head snapped up, sensing another presence and snorting when she realized who it was. "So much for the dramatic goodbye. Can't stay away, can you?"

She hugged Elena tight and whispered, "I'll find him. I'll bring him home. Take care of yourself, Elena."

Elena nodded and waited until Caroline left before opening the packet. She breathed in deeply, inhaling the scent of blood, feeding her desire. A low growl escaped her as she ripped into the bag, greedily devouring the contents, her fangs sliding out in response.

She finished but the hunger didn't wane, it rose inside her, demanding to be satisfied, already instinctively seeking out the nearest prey with her heightened senses. But a second of clarity pulled Elena back and she noticed her hands, smeared with blood. With a howl of pain, she fell forward in tears, disgusted with the monster she has become.

Arms encircled her and drew her in, steady even against her resistance and simply holding her when she calmed down. Damon held her in complete silence, mourning with Elena, for the release of mortality that she had now lost forever.

* * *

Klaus placed his hands on the marble tomb, leaning on it, wanting to weigh it down further to ensure the seal was never broken. The silence around him was deafening and a cold dread was creeping up on him, taunting him that this was the calm before the inevitable storm.

"NO!" He shouted grabbing the torch from the wall and throwing it clear across the room, "This shall not pass!"

"I am immortal, Niklaus," a disembodied voice hissed through the darkness, "A true immortal not like you and your petty minions. I will rise and rip you to pieces. This prison will be _your _tomb."

Klaus' head snapped up, "Elena," he whispered, realizing that the doppelganger had made her decision. It was the only explanation. The wards were not meant to let anything through and now…he could more than just hear her…Klaus could feel her.

"Yes," the voice said, getting louder, stronger, "she has turned. It is only a matter of time."

"She is a fool! They are all fools!" Klaus shouted in rage, "I will not allow this!"

The world became silent once more but it did not appease him. The darkness suffocated him, driving him mad.

"I do not fear you," Klaus snarled into the empty space, "Do your worst. I dare you."

He fell to his knees, a lone tear falling from his eyes, "I have no soul. I have no heart. There is nothing left to break, Tatia. You made sure of that a thousand years ago. _You _brought us here. But I will be the one to end it. Mark my words, Tatia, I will kill you."


End file.
